This invention relates generally to antennas, and more particularly, to antennas in compact portable wireless devices.
As integrated circuit technology advances, it is becoming feasible to construct portable wireless devices with small form factors. Examples of compact portable wireless devices include mobile telephones, wireless headsets, digital cameras with wireless capabilities, remote controls, wristwatch-type devices, music players with wireless functions, and handheld computers. Devices such as these are often small enough to be held in the hand and may sometimes be referred to as handheld electronic devices.
Compact portable wireless devices use antennas to transmit and receive radio-frequency signals. For example, handheld computers often contain short-range antennas for handling wireless connections with wireless access points.
It is generally desirable for an antenna for a compact portable wireless device to exhibit a high efficiency. Antennas with high efficiencies are less likely to consume excessive power than inefficient antennas and are therefore able to operate using smaller power supplies. In some environments, it is desirable for the antenna in a compact portable wireless device to exhibit a wide bandwidth.
These design goals are challenging in situations in which space is at a premium. It is therefore often difficult or impossible to construct an antenna for a compact portable wireless device that meets efficiency and bandwidth targets.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide improved antennas for compact portable wireless devices and improved compact portable wireless devices that use such antennas.